Dying Light: Crimson Abyss
by Unorganized Chaos
Summary: It's been about ten minutes since the end of the battle with Rais and the thwart of the GRE's advancement to weaponize the virus. Finally free of the struggle, Kyle's next objective is as clear as day: Liberate the city back to its normal ways or die trying.
1. Chapter 1: Reflections

AUTHOR'S NOTE: **Hello all! This is my first FanFiction I've written, and its about the continuation of one of the best games of 2015 I've had such a fortune to play on Xbox One. Aside from such, critisicm and suggestions are accepted. I really hope you enjoy reading this chapter, and expect more to follow in the coming months if school doesn't attack me with papers of death. Enjoy! :)**

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Chapter 1- Reflections

Rais's Skyscraper

18:00

The former G.R.E operative sat upright against the back of the concrete pillar. He inhales slowly and winces from the burning pain radiating from within his lungs. A torrential flood of memories rushed through his head as he closes his eyes to rest slightly. Karim's death, Rahim's death, Zere… _Jade. _'_Christ, why couldn't I have just picked up the injector and gave it to her, despite her resistance. Why the hell did she have to die? Why did I lose another...' _He sighs and shakes his head, dismissing the rest of his grievous thoughts and giving off a small grunt of exertion as he opens his eyes and pushes himself upright.

The last sounds of the blue G.R.E helicopter echo in his eardrums as the metallic blue bird flies off into the unknown. For all he cared, the G.R.E could go fuck themselves. Trying to lie to the public and weaponize the virus instead of curing it was the main reason they were on the top of his shitlist, the only good thing about them was his training and the pay. "Least they're gone now" he muses out loud to himself. Taking the research box and placing it in his backpack, he zips it up and proceeds to find a way of getting off of the hellish skyscraper.

He moves over to the blue cargo container, the blood from Rais's throat still fresh as it glistens smoothly in the sunlight. '_Crazy fuck… Glad he's dead now.' _Kyle thinks and sighs, a dry laugh escaping him. Stepping close to the edge, Kyle peers over only to reel back from the sheer distance to the ground. He wasn't a mathematician, but the rough estimate of that drop was a good 1000+ feet. Judging from all the infected down on the lower levels of the building, coupled with Bombers, Miners and the turned Survivors… It was quite a long shot from an alternative he was willing to risk.

Squinting his eyes and peering down once more, he is barely able to make out the faintest outline of a trashbin container, stacked with those little blue familiar trash bags that had saved his ass more times than he could count. The rest of the area below is littered in twisted metal, bodies, pools of blood and hungry Infected. Sighing, he moves back and gets a running start- jumping at the last second and skidding on the container. He stops right before the edge, the grits of dirt and grime falling off the bottom of his shoes and into the mess below as he holds his hand out to balance himself. Gulping softly, he's brought out of his trance by a loud gurgling growl.

Swiveling around and looking for the source of the noise, he spots a Toad on the top of one of the pillars. The acidic infected screeches, then prepares to spit as its massive green abdomen expands. Kyle prepares for the attack by holding his shield out in front of him, the Toad releasing a thick stream of steaming acid. Kyle flinches, but then his eyes widen as he realizes the Toad targeted the cable above that kept the container suspended. Kyle wastes no time in bolting forward to jump off the container right as the cable snaps from the acidic corrosion; landing on the platform once more and slipping on a pool of blood.

Kyle yelps as his footing is taken out from under him, sending him onto his back with a loud thud. Luckily, he didn't hit his head.. Either that, or the adrenaline kept him from the horrendous sensation of a head wound. He flips onto his stomach and stands upright, moving his right hand to his holster and quickly taking aim at the bloated monstrosity with his German-made 9mm pistol. Squeezing the trigger was both a blessing and a curse in this twisted city, where whatever would be attacking you is now dead, but as a punishment the sound drew the more dangerous infected to your position.

Today was no different.

Round after round of 9X19 Parabellum ammunition tore their way through the Toad, the creature emitting a loud belch-like splatter as one of the rounds caught it right in the forehead; the head detonating in a reddish-green mist. Not even a few seconds after he stopped firing, the familiar loud screeching of Virals began echoing in the air as he peers quickly down to the ledge once more. "Whelp, nothing like taking risks" he comments to himself. Putting his pistol securely back into the holster, he backs up a few paces before taking one last look behind him. A pair of grey, blistered feminine hands appears on the top of the ladder; a female Viral emerging from ledge and looking around. Almost instantly as she spots him, her eyes seem to light up a tinge redder as she throws her arms back and screams loudly. Flipping the bird to the turned survivor, he runs and leaps off of the ledge.

Down below, a lone Infected enjoys its rotting carcass of a dinner. Feeling like climbing on top of a random object to get a better vantage point on its human food, it gets up from the meal and climbs on top of a nearby dumpster. Looking around, the zombie lets a rattling sigh escape its throat. Slowly, the faintest sound of a drawn-out scream is heard, getting progressively louder. It perks its head up, just in time to get crushed to death from the weight of the falling operative beneath it. Kyle groans and coughs, the wind knocked out of him from the impact as he looks down at the source of the hard landing. Leaning his head back, he groans softly. "Good thing it wasn't a bag of rusty knives" he laughs to the sheer absurdity of the joke with the realization that it very well could be true one day for him. He sighs softly, grunting as he gets upright and off of the dumpster.

"_Attention fellow Survivors… You don't want to be playing hooky with the Nightmares, right? I thought not. Get to the nearest safe house or seek the nearest shelter until dawn. You've got about ONE hour. Brecken out."_

He mutters irritably to himself. Damned nighttime was almost here and he was once again pitted against the blackened clock of the dark. Looking around quickly, he spots the familiar blockade of the red, spiked bus. He breaks into a sprint and vaults the wall next to it, hitting the ground with a thud as he quickly regains his bearings and makes a mad beeline for the Tower. Checking over his shoulder and behind him, he spots nothing yet. Right as he looks back, however, he slams right into a Nightwalker; the beast elicits a snarl of alarm as it is toppled onto its stomach. Kyle trips over the brute's legs and curses under his breath as he steadies himself, continuing to run as hard as he can with the Tower's UV lights visible in sight. The Nightwalker, upon recovering, emits a sharp howl before giving chase. Within ten seconds, five more of the abominations are after him and closing the distance.

The cold air of the night finally reached down his throat and wrapped around his frail lungs with its chilled fingers; turning every voluntary contraction of his organs into a pained wheeze as he does nothing but run, jump and scale the dilapidated shanty buildings as if it were second nature to him. His legs felt numb, yet his will to move forward keeps him from tripping up from the obstacles and lunging infected. He snapped out of his trance and became more alert as the shambling infected started to turn and became Night Walkers, sprinting and screeching at him as they move in to join the chase. "Fifty meters left.. Oh God, c'mon!" Kyle yells to himself as he sees the tower's UV lights activate. Bolting through the entrance, he pulls out the garage door remote and presses it. Smirking and standing triumphantly at the entrance, the biters sprint and instantly seize up as electrical currents traverse through their body and chain onto the others in a beautiful display of blue and white. The volatiles stand back, seemingly aware of the danger as they hiss and flail their arms at Kyle in a blind rage. Kyle flips the bird to the hulking bastards and walks to the wall, the noise of the hissing increased louder as if he pissed them off even more by the gesture.

He moves to the entrance and climbs up halfway, only to have a hand grab him by the wrist and yank him up into a brotherly hug as he releases a startled yelp. Almost instantly after the interaction does a roar of cheer and applause greet his ears from the various survivors around him. He looks down slightly, only to recognize the yellow shirt of Brecken. A firm, bandaged hand claps him on the shoulder as the Aussie breaks the embrace with Kyle. "Ye fuckin' did it, mate.. Yer a goddamn savior." Brecken says, the various other survivors shouting in approval. Brecken smiles, his teeth crooked yet surprisingly white. His bandages had come off, revealing a slightly scarred forehead and messy brown hair. "Didcha find Jade?" Brecken asks curiously, as the room begins to die down into a deathly mute silence.

Kyle feels a pang of warm, bitter remembrance pulse through his body as he shakes his head with a grim expression. "Jade…. didn't make it out." he states solemnly, his voice low as he fights a wave of emotion threatening to break his resolve. The entire room is stunned into a state of disbelief and shock; the cheerful mood instantly shot down by the heartbreaking news. Brecken's smile fades at a gradual pace as he places his face and his hands and exhales sharply, shaking his head. As Kyle looks around, the room's occupants are standing still as statues, their jaws set as there wasn't a dry eye in the room. They lost part of themselves, their Jade, their soul….

And he had to kill her. Just like Rahim.


	2. Chapter 2: The Sitrep

**AUTHOR'S NOSE**

**(Hey guys and gals, it's been a helluva while since I've updated this story! I've been really busy with a culmination of homework, birds and applying for colleges to pursue my career in police work. Expect more updates in the distant future, and certainly pease provide criticism/suggestions/improvements in the comments below! Thanks so much!)**

Brecken's Tower

06:00

The warm hand of dawn pried its way through the blinds of Kyle's room, stretching its indefinitely long golden fingers across the bed where the young scout lay. The warmth of the light shifts to stream across his eyes, soon eliciting a groan from the man as he rolls over, then awakens with a start when the sharp unmistakable crack of a rifle fills the air. Kyle looks around in alarm, then slowly relaxes as he ends up yawning and blinking rapidly. Damned survivor must've gotten himself in a pinch and had to use his gun as a last resort… Poor bastard. As much as Kyle's instinct told him to grab his machete and rescue the fool, his mind simply wouldn't allow such at the current moment.

'_Hey, in a post-apocalyptic world filled with undead, sometimes people can't save the ones that screw themselves over.' _Kyle thinks to himself and sighs. His thoughts were instantly confirmed when the sound of piercing male screams filled the air which soon died out into a few whimpered moans if one listened close enough. He winces from the sound and sighs, the other residents of the tower awakened by the clamor as if it were a horrible alternative to a rooster call… Which it pretty much was. To the newbies of the safe haven, it was utter terror for the first couple months having to wake up with their own screams in response… To the rest, it was nothing but a distraction; another wake-up-call to remind them of the harsh reality they were residing in when they eventually got used to it with a dead silence and emotionless faces as the people cried out for help.

Kyle was understandably one of the new ones, and even though it was understandable that people were used to such… It seemed heartless.

He shakes his head and sniffs, standing upright and stretching as his joints pop with protest. Rather then stand around for another second, he moves outside and down the hall to the elevator. The denizens of the Tower were already up, some still emerging from the door in their robes and gowns as they warily observe their environment. When their eyes meet his, it's a mixed bag of emotion. Looks of relation, pride, sympathy, sorrow, and respect come from each and every one of them as he passes them by.

To Kyle, he laughed a bit inside every time he saw the looks of adoration the children gave him. Even the children had been taught the atrocities of Rais and his group of thugs, and they certainly though he was working for them when he went to get the Antizen, regardless of the G.R.E label practically painted on his back. To this day, those once-fearful little pupils were turned into awestricken gazes as they adored the man who saved their city and given then a new start on life. Chuckling to himself and shaking his head, he makes his way to the elevator and take it up to the new mess hall. Thanks to Brecken, in the timespan of one month the entire downstairs section of the hotel lobby was cleaned out and repurposed into a dining area.

Currently, it was the cleanest floor in the entire building. Making his way down the white-tiled staircase, he places his hands on his hips and looks around. One section of the room was stacked full with crates of styrofoam lunch trays, some of the tops popped off and plastic bags ripped open. The others were divided into more neatly organized categories, with the various foods and ingredients for cooking labeled in boxes and tupperware containers hastily scribbled in faded Sharpie marker.

Kyle admires the room from the doorway, unaware that the male in the yellow shirt stands just behind him. A tanned, young hand clasps him firmly on his shoulder as Kyle jumps slightly, then relaxes at the warmth of the touch. "Ey, mate..How's it going?" Brecken says softly, his tone neutral and more sympathetic from last night's news still sinking in. Kyle sighs and looks over his shoulder briefly, stiffly nodding. "Could always be worse, Brecken. Still is a lot to take in." Kyle says, his tone dejected.

Brecken gives his shoulder a slight squeeze, making a sympathetic 'hmm' as he moves to stand beside him. "Well, the toime you were gone we built tha' mess. Ye like it?" Brecken inquires, a prideful smirk on his face. Kyle smiles a bit and nods. "Fine piece of work, Brecken… How's the situation here been since Rais's thugs are scattered?" Kyle tilts his head a bit, looking over to him slightly. Brecken sighs deeply, a calm look smoothing over his usually hardened features. "They've dispersed.. Some even defected to the Tower, claiming that over half the people there didn't know how much of a fuckin' psycho Rais was until he slowly went bonkers and started making people eat eyeballs fer punishment."

Brecken says with a shudder. He begins to move forward, reaching to pat Kyle on the back softly as he briskly moves right to the first military surplus crate there is, labeled "MRE". He opens up the olive-drab container, retrieving two of the ration packets and tossing one blindly in the air to Kyle. Kyle stumbles and catches it with a soft chuckle, prepping the bag up in his hands and looking it over. "Chicken.. Ravioli..Property of the Global Relief Effort." He laughs to himself, muttering "Thanks for the free food." Brecken laughs from across the room softly. "Too roight, mate. Ye seriously saved us here. All those drops ye kept bringing in yielded MRE's and even some vials of Antizen on occasions. So in reality yer thankin yerself." Brecken snickers and heads to a nearby cafeteria table, sitting down on the grey dusty bench and tearing open his MRE. Kyle soon joins him, sitting across from him and opening his up when Brecken begins to speak once more.

"Now that ye.. Killed Rais and turned down the GRE's offer, what're ye gonna do? Bloody thugs are growing in numbers since ye left, and we've had to fend off several attacks from them. One even brought a gun and a whole shitton of Infected converged on us within minutes." Brecken says with a sigh, looking up at Kyle. "We've lost about several people in that attack alone, and numbers of incoming survivors are growing distant each day… I honestly don't know jus' what we're gonna do." Brecken sits in silence, allowing Kyle to ponder the situation at hand. '_Shit… I didn't even see anybody remotely near the tower when I made my runs to the QM, even at night… How could this have happened?' _Kyle wonders to himself for a few before suddenly slamming a fist down onto the table and causing Brecken to jump slightly. "I think I know just what the problem was… Where'd they first start appearing?" Kyle inquires, leaning in on the table and tilting his head. Brecken raises an eyebrow, before answering a tad puzzled. "They… came in through the front. Didn't expect the ledge or the fence, but one of our newest scouts reported seeing them come _up_ from under the bridge." Kyle frowns at this, of course they'd be like rats and use the tunnel systems scattered through the city… Yet why attack them when they themselves have no leader? Didn't most of the members rebel against Rais? Conspire to leave? Whoever these remaining cronies were, it sounded to Kyle like they were guided by their own ideals now. "How many are there that remain?" Kyle says casually, starting to get a tad nervous with Brecken's next words.

"Jus' enough to overthrow the Tower and kill everyone, indicated by the scouting reports a few weeks after.."


	3. Chapter 3: Settling in

**AUTHOR'S NOTE!**

**(HeeeeEEEEEEEEEEEEY GUISE! I'm FINALLY back after completing my Junior year of High School and transitioning up the totem pole as a Senior! I'm glad to be back from hiatus and right where I left off! About earlier, I'm keeping the police work as a backup plan. Right now, I am focusing on either entering the Air Force or Navy! If that doesn't work out, I plan to get an associates in EMT from the community college after I graduate, THEN go into the police force if applicable. Thank you so much to whoever has stuck with me and this story, and updates will be a lot more common! Apologies for this chapter being short, I admit to my overall laziness on this one. Thank you for reading, and as always be sure to comment, review and suggest! Enjoy! :)**

Brecken's Tower

06:34

Kyle's blood ran cold.

How could they have possibly amassed that amount of forces AND managed to occupy the sewer systems below the tower without being killed, spotted or attacked? Something wasn't right, and it was making Kyle uneasy as he vacantly stared into Brecken's eyes for a few quiet moments unaware of the burly male furrowing his brow in concern.

"Eh, Kyle… ye alroight?" The Aussie questions, leaning in a tad and prompting Kyle to back up softly.

"No, not really, Breck… It doesn't make sense that a bunch of the bandits around the outposts would suddenly just flock to the sewer systems. Having Rais betray them all was one thing, but for all the outposts in Harran to come dashing here? What was their purpose, and who could've coordinated them like that?" Kyle sighs softly, looking down and back up with a sudden spark in his eye. "As a community, we're only capable of surviving an attack force of fourteen men at the most… That is, if everyone knows how to shoot.." Kyle says, stroking his chin in thought. "Do those guards upstairs have any military experience?

Brecken tilts his head in thought, slowly nodding. "Aye, we've got about six or so that served in the United States Army before traveling 'ere for vacation.. They all checked in here during the outbreak, and I actually was the tenth person to be accepted." Kyle tilts his head at this in befuddlement, having believed that Brecken himself actually founded the group and lead them. "Wait, wait.. you're saying that you are not the leader of the Tower?" Kyle says, puzzled. Brecken gives off a snort of a laugh, before responding "Aye, I am. Before me, there was a twenty-something drill sergeant. Very young, lean and built lad that looked out for everyone 'an had a heart of gold. He coordinated everything, from building projects to each individual room personally supplied with ammo, medicine, and clothes. He'd make us exercise, sing the Pledge, as if we still found hope in God and Freedom.. He used to go out for a jog every morning… " Brecken took a deep breath, exhaling in a sad, solemn sigh as he recounts the memory as if it was still fresh. "I watched him from tha' porch one morning as he ran out fer a jog; then I heard a pop and saw his head jolt back, and he collapsed to the ground. Didn't even make it to the bridge. One of Rais's snipers got 'em, and about five men all in yellow and grey came out of tha' morning mist and searched his body, then shot him again in the head when they were done.. Thank God I hid when I did, they passed and didn't seem to know we belonged here.." Brecken says with a sigh. "Then they all kinda.. Looked up to me. I've been the leader ever since his death."

Kyle takes in this information slowly, piecing everything together and nodding briefly with a rare smile. "It's what he would've wanted, Breck." The operative sighs softly, face hardening as he resumes his previous thoughts. It didn't seem right. With Rais eliminated, why would the remaining survivors attempt to take refuge directly under the tower? More importantly, how in the world did they get in virtually undetected? These people were military trained- well, half of them. It would be impossible for them to slip out under their noses during constant sentry shifts through the day and night. Were this really Rais's men, or were they just simply a loosely organized raider group? Kyle's expression darkened with the realization that they could very well go back to Rais's tower and arm themselves to the teeth with the remaining weapons caches that were not destroyed. The whole thing was a mess, and if they didn't act soon it would surely mean a grim fate for all involved. Kyle proceeded to speak up, the morning fatigue wearing off with a sudden burst of energy.

"Brecken, I need you to double the watch shifts for each individual guard, and get the Quartermaster to begin supplying the tower's civilians with a gun and some ammo. Clear out and repurpose an area of the tower for a firing range, and have one of the guards pair up with a civilian to supervise and train them in preparation for any upcoming attacks. I'm going to perform a quick supply run to restock this place."

Brecken's eyes opened with the sudden exclamation, and gradually begin to crack a half-witted smile and a scoff of accomplishment. "Crane, yer a goddamn genius. However, I've got tha' supply part under control. Ye see, while ye were gone dancin' wif Rais, I assembled a team of Runners to solely make supply runs. 'Course, they're obviously equipped to handle combat situations if under attack."

Kyle looked genuinely surprised, internally his respect increasing at the fitness instructor's preparedness. "Well, damn.. Uh, what exactly do you need me to do then?" Kyle asks with a slight chuckle, folding his arms. Brecken returns the gesture in a playfully mocking manner, allowing a soft snort to emit from a sneer. "Go wif them on these runs. They could learn a lot from a professional soldier loike yerself. Today, just take it easy. Tomorrow, however, I have an assignment for ye. I'll be see'n ya around, Crane." And with that, Brecken got up to pivot on his heel, turning to walk briskly out the door, leaving a slightly confused, yet intrigued Kyle alone at the table to finish up his MRE in the silence of the cold, dimly-lit grey room.

'_Something tells me tomorrow is going to be more than just an assignment..'_


End file.
